Thoughts on Leadership, Life and Fun stuff

Archive for June, 2011

No one like detours. If you’re an impatient type-A person like me, you really hate detours. I don’t build enough margins in my day for extra time to get somewhere. By its own nature, a detour is a slower, longer, less convenient way to get anywhere. Who wants that? But it has been in the detours of my life that I have grown the most. As I take inventory of the times where I made the most progress in the professional, personal, as well spiritual parts of my life, I can point out to specific “detours” that forced me to get off the highway, take the slower more cumbersome path that would eventually lead me to a place a discomfort but growth at the same time. I remembering taking a detour in college when my parents called me on my 19th birthday to let me know that they couldn’t send…

There’s a big difference between being easy going and being passive. The first allows you enjoy life more than someone who’s always worked up about the little things or the stuff he cannot control. Being passive is a problem. It assumes that the old saying “que sera, sera” or “whatever will be, will be” is true. While being easy going might be a virtue, being passive is a liability. I have enough self awareness to know that I’m not easy going by any means. My natural tendency is to micromanage just about everything. I’d like to think I have become better with age at letting things go and trusting capable people to do their jobs. But It’s not an easy thing for me. Just ask my wife. As I think about my propensity to be more passive than I’d like, I try to find out what motivates me not to…

‘You don’t have a brand. You are a brand.’ Those were words came out during a conversation with a client recently and have stuck with me for a while. If you’re not sure what I mean about brand, I defined it here. Corporate brands aside, each one of us are crafting every day what are brands are what it stands for and all the other dynamics that go with the intangibles of who we are. Brands are created by impressions that, over time, create a picture of who we are in the mind of our audience, no matter who they are. Everything we do, say, wear, drive, matters. Our personal brand is not only the professional head shot on a blog or social media profile, but the total effect of everything we put out there. The implications are huge. Our words matter. Language defines us more than most anything else.…

Every man needs a good bathing suit, especially during the summer. And if you’re at the pool, lake or beach you’re always having to change into something nicer to go to a restaurant or a walk down the street. In my mind, exchanging my boardshorts for dress shorts means I’m done having fun in the water. Now, thanks to the new hybrid boardshorts, I don’t have to change from bathing suit to street wear. While boardshorts have been a staple in men’s wear for several years and have grown in popularity, they still most worn around water. There are exceptions to the rule however, like my friend Christian, who wears them as his workout shorts. While he can pull off the boardshorts-outside-the-pool look, most guys can’t. We’d just look goofy. But then enter O’Neill to the rescue. The hybrid boardshorts are just what the name claims: a bathing suit that…

I’m not a relationship expert by any means, but I am surrounded by great relationships with co-workers, clients, life-long friends and family. I remember, however, a time in my life where I had a difficult time making friends. What changed? I did. I remember being so insecure that I believed I didn’t have much to offer anyone. I couldn’t imagine walking up to the “cool people” of the day and introducing myself. I used to think that I needed to be wealthy, smart, good looking–preferable all three– in order to get attention and popular friends. After all, at least the money and some expensive toys could buy a few people’s affections. Needless to say that never worked. It wasn’t until I began to have a better understanding of who I was as a person, my true identity, that I was able to muster the confidence to get out of my…

Today is a special day for me:It’s the Summer solstice. I’m not a sun or nature worshiper, but I love summer because I love daylight. I’m energized by getting a lot done in a day, and there’s nothing that says carpe diem more than the longest day of the year. In the northern hemisphere it happens to be today. We’ll have 14h 37m 25s worth of light in beautiful Brentwood, TN. And I’m going to celebrate it by squeezing everything I can out of this long day. But as I try to curb my enthusiasm, I understand that not everyone feels the same about it. While I’ll be up at 4:30 so that by 5:00 I can be running the neighborhood before hitting the gym at 6 and getting to work by 8 a.m., some are dreading the long day. I don’t know where you are on this one, but…

The storm was at full force by the time I finished my run. All I could see were dark clouds, lighting and rain all around me. It always amazes me how storms come out of nowhere, and in a matter of minutes can wreak so much havoc. Life’s storms often behave the same way. You’re going through your daily routine and then there’s a call or a text message and everything changes. As if you were out for a walk in the beautiful sunshine and before you knew, the skies turned to gray and a storm catches you by surprise. Do you know what I’m talking about? If you live long enough you will. Those moments are not easily forgotten. I remember conversations, texts and calls where in an instance, everything changed. Words like “accident, I’m leaving, this is not working out, you’re overdrawn” have a way to instantly create…

So you’re doing a job you are over qualified for. That’s not that uncommon these days. I have friends who are working in positions they had mastered several years back. They have more education, experience, skill and knowledge than the job requires, and yet, they find themselves performing tasks that those whom worked for them used to do. Whether you are in this situation because of a life transition, a re-entry into the work force or a corporate restructure, you might be tempted to be frustrated and even disillusioned. Before you get too discouraged consider: You are not defined by what you do. For most guys this is easier said than done. We often have too much of our identity tied up in our careers. I know I do. I often need to be reminded that who I am as a person is much more important than what I do…

Today I did something I have not done in a long time. I read fiction. I read fiction that I didn’t have to read. I read fiction that was not a client’s submission or a potential author I’m considering representing. I didn’t skim the book. I read every word. I purposely put aside all the other reading I “have” to get done on vacation and got lost in a story under an umbrella on the beach. I had no idea how much I needed to rest my mind from going into so many different directions, even if was just for a few hours. When did you last take time to read a novel? When was the last time you got lost in a story? If you had asked me that a few days ago, I would not have known how to answer it. I hope you don’t take as long…

The essence of communication is to understand your product, your audience and to present your product in a way your audience can understand it. Simple, right? Well, not in my experience with legacy Christian organizations. Some are losing the battle with culture and relevance. First, let me define legacy organizations: movements, groups and churches that are in their second or third generations of existence. Some critics have accused these legacy organizations of becoming irrelevant thus finding themselves in trouble trying to recruit new followers, fund their programs and budgets and survive, much less thrive, in current economic challenges. But that’s not what I see happening in the American Christian landscape. While some might be out of touch, most of these ministries are led by godly men and women who are passionate about evangelism, missions, discipleship, social justice and serving and are trying very hard to advance the cause of the…